The short version is that Shirt Thirteen came about because I love the college-inspired typography of Shirt Twelve so much. But working "Recognize" into the Kill Hubris lexicon hasn't been quite that straight a line.
Coming of age in the '90s, I heard "recognize" every time I turned around (particularly in West Coast rap). Admittedly, I wore it out myself. If we know each other IRL, you know that the majority of my vocabulary comes from Friday and Tombstone, but—outside of work—a good chunk of the remainder comes from the music I grew up with. As a result, it felt natural to use "Recognize" to succinctly emphasize the responsibility each of us bears for the way we conduct ourselves. It also has an exhortational quality that fits nicely with the concept of arrogance as a self-imposed obstacle, thus the tagline—First Rule Of Holes: If you're in one, stop digging.
Over the years, I have brainstormed, sketched, and commissioned other "Recognize" designs. I even produced one of them four years ago but shelved it at the last minute because it didn't feel all-the-way right. In contrast, everything about this one feels right, and I'd like to thank Bobby Cerda for his typographical expertise on both Twelve and Thirteen.
-Sam
*PURCHASE SHIRT THIRTEEN HERE.
